


Sorbonne University, France 1924, Autumn

by Lieju



Series: Getting Together Young (René/Indy) [2]
Category: Indiana Jones Series
Genre: M/M, Mentions of Sex, they were roommates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-09-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:09:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24778921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lieju/pseuds/Lieju
Summary: It has been few weeks since René and Indy started a romantic relationship.But there are still so many things René doesn't know about him...
Relationships: Rene Belloq/Henry "Indiana" Jones
Series: Getting Together Young (René/Indy) [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1735564
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Indiana making a comic about the opening scene of The Last Crusade (and it ending up somehow in René's possession) is canon and mentioned and included in a guide book.

René reached to kiss Indiana. He frowned at the hat poking him in the forehead.

Why was Indy wearing that thing inside anyway?

René snatched it off his head.

“Hey!”

René ignored Indiana's protests and turned the hat in his hands. “Such a ratty old thing... Get a new one.”

“I like _this_ one. It has significance-”

Indiana looked uncertain. “It was a whole thing- Let me show you I think I have it with me...”

René watched him go through his stash of things he had brought from home and eventually to the small Paris apartment when René had suggested he'd move in to help with the rent.

René considered the other man.

Indiana had been able to get a scholarship easily, but that hadn't paid for the accommodations in France. Indiana knew no one in the country well enough to stay with them, and René had been astonished he would have moved to study in France in the first place, this ill prepared.

Then again he had realized by now Indiana tended not to have a plan beyond 'I'll think of something' lot of the time.

He knew very little about Indiana's family, apart from the fact his mother had died when he had been a child. Something gave René the feeling he was running away from something.

He would figure it out eventually.

Indiana was interesting. That had been why René had made the offer to be room mates in the first place. Of course he had also thought he was attractive, René did have _eyes_ , but to begin with that hadn't been important. It wasn't likely Indiana would have inclinations like that and even if he did, René hadn't considered sleeping with him worth the risk.

He was pleasant company, that was all. And very intelligent and knowledgeable. He would have a great future ahead of him.

And René wanted to use that. Once René would have established a career in linguistics or archeology it would be useful for him to have connections...

Maybe to even know people he'd have some dirt on. René found living people almost as fascinating as long-dead ancient people and their cultures. And he had great plans. You never knew what would be useful later.

So he had told Indiana he could use a room mate. The agreement had been that Indiana would pay half of the rent but he had been falling behind more and more, not to mention René had been responsible for buying their food from the start.

René didn't mind. The flat was paid by his father anyway, at least until he graduated.

But he was keeping score on just how much Indiana owed him.

Just something to hold over his head if he got any ideas of trying to out René as a homosexual...

Sure, that wouldn't go well for Indiana either but René knew he was impulsive.

The sexual relationship they had started had complicated things but René was certain he could control Indiana.

His thoughts were interrupted by Indiana tossing a small booklet at him.

“What's this?”

“I drew it some time ago I was... Drawing things. And thought to myself, why not turn it into a diary of sorts? So I did. This comic depicts the adventure I had as a thirteen year old... Let me show you-”

Indiana sat next to René on the bed and reached to point at the drawings.

“This is me, in my Boy Scout uniform. Here I am being chased by the mercenaries who had found the cross of-”

“I thought this guy is you. Here, the hat-”

“I will get to it.”

“Was there really a rhinoceros? Or is that artistic license?”

“It's all true. I got the cross from the mercenaries and hurried home!”

Indiana paused, his eyes on the final page.

René looked at the images. The art wasn't bad, although Indiana was far better at drawing buildings and archaeological relics than humans. But it was difficult to make sense of the scenes depicted on the page, different characters interacting with each other in a confusing way.

He could recognize Indiana in his Scout uniform. And the man with the fedora... He had been chasing Indiana but-

René put his finger on one of the scenes on the page. “You were caught, the fedora man put his hat on your head...”

René gave a look at the hat sitting next to him on the bed.

“Yeah, that's when I got the hat,” Indiana confirmed. “And I will get the cross of Coronado too, one day.”

René filed away that remark for later and returned to examining the final page. It depicted the inside of a house. Indiana's childhood home?

_Interesting._

There was a dog depicted laying on the floor... And a shadowy person sitting at a desk-

“Who is this?” René asked.

“That's my father.” Indiana looked like he was going to say more but didn't.

Guessing there wasn't more information forthcoming René pointed at the dog. “And this? Your father's dog?”

“No, Indiana was mine.”

He noticed the look René gave him. “Listen, don't tell this to anyone, you got it?”

Very interesting indeed.

“No, I won't.”

“You promise?”

“I promise! Come on you're making me curious!”

“Indiana isn't my given name. It is my _real_ name, I gave that as my name in all of the university paperwork but _technically_ it was not the name I was born with.”

“So you took the name Indiana.” A realization dawned. “Indy, did you name yourself after a _dog_?”

“Maybe. Yes, actually. I loved that dog, she had more of a claim to raising me than my father did so why not?”

“Are you telling me I have been calling you the American equivalent of- of Médor or Rex or something this whole time?”

“No! It's maybe an- an unusual name but it's not- My mom named the dog okay she had a good taste on names.”

René laughed. “I can't believe this.”

“Remember what you promised!”

“It's fine! When you said that all I thought it was going to be about something serious! Your secret is safe with me. As long as you tell me what your real- or shall we say birth name was.”

Indiana frowned. “Henry.”

“Henry? I expected something worse. It's a cute name, Henry, not unusual either even for Americans, no?”

“It's also my father's name.”

“Oh, I see.”

This did explain some things. Indiana looked like he was done talking about this so René took the hat to his hands, turning it around, examining it, trying to properly place it and its importance into the puzzle he was building. He wanted to know every single detail about Indiana.

Indiana frowned as René put the hat on.

“How do I look?”

“Ridiculous. It doesn't fit you.”

René ignored him, tipped the hat and crossed his legs. “Draw me.”

“What?”

“Draw my portrait.”

Indiana stood up and walked to his desk. He reached for pen and paper. “Don't move.”

He got to work, somewhat to René's surprise.

“I'm not good at drawing people,” he muttered. “Mostly because they keep moving... Unlike statues and pieces of pottery. I like drawing pottery.”

“Not me? I will be a very good model. I'm staying still aren't I?”

“Hm.”

He looked at René. “But you are still talking.”

He returned to work, every now and then reminding René to stay still.

“Finished. But... Just remember what I said.”

“Come on!”

“I don't think I managed to capture the eyes... I'd need more colors...”

René looked at the picture. It wasn't a great likeness as far as he thought but Indiana was far from a bad artist.

René slipped it in his pocket. “I'll keep it. To compare.”

Indiana frowned. “Compare to what?”

René gave him a smile. “To other times when you'll draw me. To see if you improve.”

Indiana returned his smile. “Maybe next time I'll get the eyes right.”


	2. The Whip

“I don't know why you keep dragging that thing around,” René pointed out.

Indiana held out the bullwhip as if it was the most normal thing to bring with you on a Sunday walk to the Tuileries garden, the park near to the flat the two of them shared. “Why not? I need to stay in practice.”

“For what? In case you meet a wild lion escaping from the zoo?” René gestured at the park with its well trimmed bushes. “Meet the Beast of Gevaudan crawling out of its hibernation?”

“Oh that would be a sight. A mysterious bloodthirsty beast middle of Paris?” Indiana laughed. “Wouldn't mind finding that. It has been pretty boring for a while. Give me a call if it gnaws at your feet.”

“I will advice it to eat you instead. Bigger. More to sink its teeth in.”

Despite his flippant tone René couldn't help wonder how seriously Indy meant it. How much he was craving excitement. Not that René minded it as such, at least when it made him easier to manipulate, but he had a feeling the other man might be unpredictable...

He watched Indy uncoil his whip, and he wondered if Indy was feeling antsy...

_He might do something stupid if he gets bored enough._ And then an another unwelcome thought that felt like a foregone conclusion:

_Once he gets bored with me he might-_

“What do you have against it? The whip I mean,” Indiana asked, interrupting René's train of thought.

René sat on the park bench and pulled out a book. “It just is... Such an inelegant weapon. All brutal strength and none of the-” René jumped at the loud crack of the whip and cursed. “ _ Putain! _ Be careful, what if you hit me?”

“I won't.” But Indy moved slightly further away.

René watched him set up three empty cans on a fence.

“Get the middle one first,” René told him.

The whip snaked through the air and with an another crack the middle can flew off the fence.

“You really did it!”

Indy gave him a self satisfied smirk. “You had doubts?”

“I maybe did misunderstand what kind of a weapon it is,” René admitted.

At the very least it was far more accurate than he had assumed.

“I prefer to think of it as a tool,” Indy told him. “Not that it can't be a weapon.”

He moved again. René watched the movement of the whip, observing his control over it. It almost felt like an extension of his arm.

First the left and then the right can flew off. René clapped.

Indiana walked to set up his targets again.

He gave René a smirk. "It's a warm summer day isn't it?" He pulled off his shirt.

René pretended to be preoccupied with his book while taking in every detail. Not that this was in any way an unusual or a rare sight for him, but there was something fascinating in watching his toned muscles work.

And to some extent, it was the public nature of it that felt exciting.

Indiana's whip act was getting the wandering Parisians's attention and curious onlookers were starting to gather, keeping a respectful distance from the cracking whip.

René could spot more than one woman giving looks to Indiana. A brunette pointed at Indy, whispering something to her friend.

René knew what that look was about.

Not that it mattered. After this was over one of them would get to fall in bed with Indiana and fuck him thoroughly and it wouldn't be her-

Indiana looked at René directly as if reading his mind. “So? What do you think?”

“I am suddenly feeling far more safe. In case of any tiger or a hyena attacks us or a burglar crawls in through the window middle of the night you will just flick your wrist and SNAP the beast is vanquished. And probably you won't even hit me in the face while doing it.”

“Well, it might come in handy.”

René watched an another can fly off. “I am sure you will bravely protect me from any threatening canned foods.”

Indy laughed and René's heart leaped.

He had always understood that when it came to it the only person he could really trust was himself. He took pride in not needing anyone. Sure you could get people to do things for you if you were cleverer than them and knew enough about people but-

Someone like Indiana taking his side, protecting him, because he _ chose  _ to-

Of course that would not have been true choice. Whatever Indiana felt towards him, and René didn't expect it to be particularly deep, was based on false superficial impressions.

None of it was real, and René was definitely not enough of a romantic to believe Indiana would want to stick with him once he managed to figure René out. No matter, René could still use him.

It was nothing like a real friendship.

And even if it was, a foolish notion of any kind of chivalrous _love_ was childish.

That wasn't how the real world worked. Even when René had been a child, before he had realized where his preferences lay, he had found the fairytales with their prince Charmings ridiculous.

But as he sat in the afternoon sun in the park, lazily watching Indiana's control over the whip, it was a nice daydream to dwell on for a bit.

* * *

Indiana opened his eyes and stretched. He blinked slowly, wondering what exactly was wrong.

He was laying in the smaller bedroom, in his own bed. He stared at the hook on the wall.

The place where he usually hang his bullwhip was empty.

He sat up, trying to remember. They had been on a walk in a park yesterday... He had not left it at the park, right? He got up, glancing at the clock.

6 AM.

With his whip missing from its place on the wall a realization hit him.

There were very little of his personal belongings in there. His small bedroom was largely filled by a bookshelf, with both his and René's books neatly organized by René according to subject matter.

Apart from the shelf and the narrow bed the room only had a small closet for the few clothes Indiana owned.

When Indiana had arrived to Paris he had had just a change of clothes, his hat and his bullwhip.

It had been two years and he hadn't gotten around to collecting any more personal belongings...

It felt a bit weird, now.

He stepped out of his room and paused to take in the sight. He remembered coming home late with René... Pushing him against the wall... Them making out in the living room...

That explained the leather jacket, haphazardly thrown on the sofa.

To Indy's relief he found his whip coiled under it.

He eyed the jacket but an odd impulse told him to leave it. René would be annoyed, and Indy would pick it up and take it to his room, but the fact it was here now felt like a statement of some kind.

Maybe he was still half-asleep.

But he lifted his whip and inspected it. It was fine...

Good, he'd have trouble getting a new one in France.

The whip in hand he tip toed to René's bedroom door and slowly opened it.

He was still deep asleep in his bed.

Indiana stood at the door, watching his friend sleep.

His bed was larger, and there would have been plenty of room for Indiana to lay next to him.

_Why not?_

But he didn't move.

Sex was happening regularly now, but usually afterwards they both retreated to their bedrooms for the night.

Indiana stared at the sleeping man.

Indy had had sex with many girls and women over the years and even gone out regularly with a few, but had never actually _lived_ with any of them-

_But that's different._

He suddenly wasn't interested in dwelling in this all.

So he moved away from the door and returned to his room.

He set his whip on the hook on the wall and stared at the empty room.

_Maybe I should put up some paintings._


End file.
